The National Black Political Convention, or the Gary Convention, was held on March 10–12, 1972 in Gary, Indiana. The convention gathered around ten thousand African-Americans to discuss and advocate for black communities that undergo significant economic and social crisis. Part of their goal was to raise the number of black politicians elected to office, increase representation, and create an agenda for fundamental change. The convention also issued the Gary Declaration, which stated that the American political system was failing black Americans and that the only way to address this problem was to transition to independent black politics.
Notable participants in the convention included Gary mayor Richard Hatcher, civil rights activist Jesse Jackson, and House Representative Charles C. Diggs Jr. Diggs Jr. and Hatcher were the two keynote speakers of the convention.
Filmmaker William Greaves' 1972 documentary Nationtime, narrated by Sidney Poitier, covers the National Black Political Convention. An 80-minute restored version was released in 2020 with funding from Jane Fonda and the Hollywood Foreign Press Association.
References
Further reading
External links "Tired of Going to Funerals:" The 1972 National Black Political Convention in Gary – The Indiana History Blog, Indiana Historical Bureau Gary Declaration – BlackPast.org National Black Political Convention, Gary, Indiana. Participants include Charles Diggs, Jesse Jackson, Jarvis Tyner, Caroline Black, Roscoe Proctor, Richard Hatcher, LeRoi Jones, Ron Dellums, Coretta Scott King, Roy Innis, Charles Stokes and Charles Evers. Photos by Garry Tyler.: Mar 11, 1972 Second National Black Convention, Little Rock, Arkansas. Participants include Ron Dellums, Richard Hatcher and Hannah Atkins. Photos by J. J. Johnson.: Mar 16, 1974 - March 17, 1974